I have no SUSPICION that this recipe would be less than great. It is one of the best I've seen from a celebrity of the mid-century period. Let me know how it goes!
Joan Fontaine, Cary Grant, in Alfred Hitchcock's Suspicion, 1941. Joan is the only actor in a Hitchcock film ever to win an Academy Award (in this case for Best Actress).
The cover of Jane Weeks Martin's classic cookbook of celebrity recipes, 1963.
Joan Fontaine's
BAKED LAMB SHANKS with SAFFRON RICE
... this companion with the saffron face.
— The Comedy of Errors: ACT IV, Scene 4
6 lamb shanks
1 cup dry red wine
1½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons A.1. Sauce
Wipe the shanks with a damp cloth. Combine the wine, salt, pepper, garlic, and bay leaf. Pour over the shanks. Marinate at room temperature I to 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator. Baste and turn shanks frequently. Drain, reserving the marinade.
Place the shanks in a shallow roasting pan; brush with the A.1.
Sauce. Roast in a 400° oven 15 minutes. Add the marinade, reduce heat to 350°, and roast 45 minutes longer or until tender. Baste frequently. Arrange on a platter and serve with Saffron Rice.
SAFFRON RICE:
¼ cup olive oil
¾ cup chopped onions
½ cup julienne-cut green pepper
1 cup raw rice
1 teaspoon saffron
2½ cups hot chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
Heat the oil in a saucepan; sauté the onions and green pepper 10 minutes. Stir in the rice and saffron until yellow and translucent.
Add the broth and salt; cover and cook over low heat 20 minutes, or until rice is tender and dry. Turn into a heated serving dish and garnish with lightly sautéed tomato quarters.
Serves 6.